Breath of Life
by ellisaco
Summary: Mark comes to his senses a little bit earlier and in the process, saves Lexie's life.


**AN: Suffice to say I wasn't happy with the season finale. Shonda, why do you always have to kill my favourite characters? !**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's Anatomy or any of the characters. I also don't own the title, which is an amazing song by Florence + the Machine. Seriously, go listen to it.**

* * *

Thank you for your candor.

He said, _thank you for your candor._

If it weren't so tragically embarrassing it would almost be funny. Almost, but not really.

God, and now they're like the new Meredith and Derek, taking awkward, tension filled elevator rides, avoiding eye contact. Her cheeks flush as she remembers being sandwiched uncomfortably between Mark and Derek. Mark looking anywhere but at her, and Derek smirking, clearly enjoying the whole situation.

She should have just kept her mouth shut and let him have little eye doctor babies with Julia. Now she doesn't know how she's going to be able to face him every day.

A nagging voice in the back of her head tells her that this is karma; Mark had pulled the exact same stunt when she was dating Alex, and she turned him down. Even though she hadn't loved Alex, knew she never would, she just couldn't give Mark her heart again, she didn't trust him yet. But of course, when she was ready, when she was really ready to love Mark and let him love her again, she was too damn late. And she was ready, oh God was she ready.

Jackson, she now realizes, had just been a distraction. An extremely sexy, amazing in bed, sweet, charming distraction, but a distraction nonetheless. She feels bad about this, but she is glad that they parted amicably. In any matter Jackson seems to have moved on, she can tell he has been obsessing over a girl recently.

Ugh, maybe she should just follow Jackson's lead. The only problem is, she's pretty sure she's never going to get over Mark Sloan. That notion is perhaps the most depressing part of this whole debacle.

A sharp rap at her door snaps Lexie out of her Mark-centric thoughts. Meredith bursts in without waiting for a response.

"Lexie, you're still in bed?" Meredith asks frantically. "We have to leave in 10 minutes!"

Lexie rolls over to look at her clock, sure enough Meredith is right, it's quarter to eight. She jumps out of bed.

"Oh my God! I have to shower; I just had a 16 hour shift."

"Lexie," Meredith says warningly.

"I'll be quick," she promises.

Less than 5 minutes later Lexie hops out of the shower, pulling her towel around her as she goes down the hall, not caring who sees her. It's not like half of the people in this house haven't already seen her naked. She grabs clothes from her closet randomly, pulling a shirt over her head and hopping around the room as she put her jeans on. She runs a brush through her hair quickly.

"I swear, Little Grey, if I miss my flight to one of the biggest surgeries of the year because of you, I will make your life a living hell." Cristina calls up the stairs.

She takes the threat seriously. Cristina Yang is definitely not someone whose bad side you want to be on. Although, if the rumors are true, it won't really matter for much longer. Lexie's not about to take the chance, though.

She opens her bedroom doors and pokes her head out.

"Go on without me, I'll meet you guys there."

There's silence for a beat.

"Are you sure?" Mer asks.

"Yeah, it's fine. I don't want you guys to be late because of me." Because she couldn't get Mark Sloan off of her mind.

From the window of her bedroom she hears Derek's car starting up, as he, Meredith, and Cristina head to the airport to meet Arizona and Mark. Mark, damn it. How did she forget that he was going to Boise, too? She just hopes that her seat is as far away from his as possible. With her luck, though, she'll probably be sitting right in between him and Derek.

Lexie runs down the stairs and grabs a piece of bread out of the cupboard and stuffs it in her mouth. She jogs to the front door and is about to leave the house when she runs smack into...

"Mark?" she asks incredulously. "What are you doing here? Derek is already on his way to the airport."

She moves to walk past him but he puts his hand on the frame of the door, barring her passage.

"Mark, I don't have time for this." Whatever_ this _is. "I have a flight to catch."

"I broke up with Julia."

Lexie's breathe catches in her throat. She can't get hopes up, though. She won't.

"That's great, Mark. Now can you move?"

He stops her again, only this time with his hands at her shoulders. He gives her a gentle shake.

"Lex, did you hear what I just said?"

"I heard you," she whispers, hardly daring to believe it.

He tips her face up to meet his deep blue eyes.

"Lexie Grey, I love you,"

"Really?" This can't be happening. Maybe, she's actually still in bed and this is all a dream.

"Yes, I do. Even though you make light of my age and the fact that I'm a grandpa. I also seem to recall you saying I'm a disease."

She feels her heart beating its way out of her chest. Just minutes ago she was convinced that she would never be happy again, and now she is getting everything she ever wanted.

"Mark." She breathes his name like a prayer.

"It's okay; I'll forgive you for that. Because i love you, I've always been in love with you, and I will always be in love with you. We're meant to be, Lexie."

"Meant to be," she says dreamily. She loves the way that sounds when it's attached to her and Mark. She can't wipe the stupid grin off her face.

A tear runs down her face, and she thinks what an odd juxtaposition to be smiling and crying at the same time.

"I love you,"

He grins. "I know, I think you told me about ten times the other night."

She blushes at the mention of her speech, rather her love sick ramblings, to Mark outside the hospital.

"Well then, I think you have some catching up to do."

"Lexie, I will spend the rest of my life telling you how much I love you. I'll say it so many times you'll be begging me to shut up."

She just shakes her head, and then she launches herself at him. He catches her easily, although she surprised him. When their lips finally connect it's as if they've never been apart. Like all the crap, all the illegitimate daughters, and granddaughters, and boys that were so _not_ right for her, just never happened. They're just Lexie and Mark and that's all that matters.

She winds her legs around his waist as he carries her up the stairs.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," he chants in between kisses.

He throws open the door to her room and places her gently on her bed. He crawls over her and kisses her neck softly. He lifts the hem of her shirt and begins kissing her flat stomach.

"Mark," she sighs, "I need you."

It's too slow. She's been waiting for this, for him, for too long. There will be time for slow later. They will have _lots_ of time for slow. Right now she just needs to feel him. He takes her off her shirt and quickly rids himself of his own. Meanwhile she is impatiently working on the button of her jeans. In no time at all, though it feels like ages, all the barriers between them are gone. There's nothing separating them, nothing stopping them from becoming one.

She arches closer to him, he wraps her into his body as if he never wants to let go. She hopes he never does.

"God, I've missed this." he confesses. "I've missed you."

She can't answer, she's too caught up in the wonderful feelings he's stirring up within her, feelings that only Mark Sloan can elicit from her.

Soon she's flying, and Mark is right there with her, and everything is perfect, everything is right with the world in that moment.

He rolls over onto his back, panting from exertion.

"Lexie, I have to tell you something." he says, his voice suddenly serious.

"What?" she asks, alarmed.

He turns on his side and kisses her so hard her already jelly-like knees go weak.

"I love you,"

She closes her eyes and lets those words sink in, and she promises herself that she will never take them for granted again.

Suddenly something occurs to her, and she sits straight up in bed. The sheets fall away from her body and Mark makes no secret of enjoying the view.

"Mark, we've missed our flight!"

"Oh, shit." He doesn't sound too concerned.

"Hunt is going to kill me. Do you know how lucky I was to be the only fourth year resident picked to be a part of this surgery?"

"I know, I'm sorry, I'll go see if there are any later flights." He moves to get up, but she stops him.

"There aren't,"

"Sorry," he repeats sheepishly, "I know how much you wanted this."

She sighs. "Don't be, I have everything I want right here in this bed."

His mouth twists into a cocky smirk.

"Well, guess who doesn't have to go into work today, then. Whatever will we do with ourselves all day?"

She laughs at his antics. "I have a feeling we'll think of something."


End file.
